Sammy was carved from a piece of Ancaster that
originally formed a baluster for an external stone
staircase at Selwyn College Cambridge. The stone
showed signs of excessive weathering and, when it
was being replaced by a new baluster in 2014, I
rescued the old one from the skip.

Ancaster is a coarse
grained limestone in which small particles of
fossil and shells can often be seen. A
large number of such
impurities are visible
around Sammy's neck and
body. Sammy
weighs 16.5 lb, measures 16" high and
has a circumference of between 9"
and 18".